The Deal Hunter Strikes Again

Score one for the internet!!

4 tickets to Baltimore, 1 rental car for 4 days: $695.

Not bad. I do, however, wish the trip were for a better reason.

I would have tried Valium, but there are laws

Prior to kids, having either Debbie or I sick was annoying, but could be a blessing. If Debbie were ill, I would take care of her, but I could also hop on the computer for long stretches. Even with one child, things weren't so bad. After all, plenty of rest time could be had when nap/quiet time came around. Now, putting one of us out of commission on a weekend is borderline cruel and unusual punishment. With two kids, there's no down time at all. I think they secretly confer to make sure they each demand their naps at separate times of the day so you have to keep at least 1 occupied at all times.
It all started last weekend when Eric contracted a fluctuating fever with some minor coughing. We figured it was an ear infection coupled with a cold. By Tuesday, we decided a pediatrician visit was required and found out the poor little guy had pneumonia. Blech! By Thursday, Lauren started sporting the signs of a cold, but fortunately not pneumonia. On Friday, I too was stricken with a cold. Then came Saturday morning. I only had congestion, with some sneezing and coughing. Debbie woke up in the middle of the night with the flu. That put me in charge of both kids for the whole day. Things went pretty well right up to about 4 in the afternoon. Around that time, my mind and body decided they were done and wanted to take a break. The kids did not oblige. I trudged through the remaining 4 hours of the day, but playing with them was really tough. I became terse and a bit snippy. Especially when Lauren would pull out her crying for no reason routine. Thank goodness for The Jungle Book. That kept Lauren occupied for an hour and a half while I gave Eric some one on one time. Once the movie was over though, it was back to both of them demanding all my attention. Debbie came down around 6:30 because Eric had heard mommy talking and went ballistic (he loves his mommy!). Debbie got him to nap while I took to the task of dinner. After the kids went to bed, so did I.
Fortunately, Sunday found Debbie feeling much better and able to at least help a bit. Good thing too, I'm not sure I could have gone that second day all by myself again feeling like I was. I've decided that next time, though, I think I'm going to sign up to be the sick parent. Suddenly the idea of holing up in the bed room with some occasional sickness unpleasantries doesn't sound nearly as bad.

A Bit of a Control Freak

I hate to admit this, but I think Lauren is a bit of a control freak. She has to manipulate her environment in a way suitable to her tastes. This weekend, we had some friends stay with us, including their 7 year old daughter. Given the gorgeous weather, we thought it would be nice to have the kids put on swimsuits and play in the yard. We recently got a giant ball that sprays water out the sides. Lauren hated it. She wouldn't even get close to it. Well, let me rephrase that. She wouldn't go near the ball after some prick turned off the water to lure her, then turned it back on to spray her. (What kind of prick does that? Honestly? To his own daughter ... oh ... whoops) Next, we pulled out a little pool. Once inflated and filled, she was in heaven. She jumped and whooped and dunked until we had to drag her inside. My only thought is she wanted to control how she got wet and a sprinkling ball just did not suit those needs.

What would you like to see at the zoo?

With the gorgeous weather, Debbie and I decided it was not the type of day to stay at home. Going to the park just didn't cut the mustard. Instead, we took a family trip to Brookfield Zoo. To accompany us on this little venture, my parents are in town for the week so they came along as well. On the way there, my mom asks Lauren what she would like to see. Lauren's response: "Dolphins!" My poor mother, thinking Lauren had lost her mind a little bit, seemed shocked. That was until I explained that, yes, Brookfield Zoo does have dolphins. When we got there, we were pleasantly surprised to find out that the Zoo was having a little promotion. All children got a free Independence Bear Beanie baby from Ty. So, while my dad put money in a vending machine to get a soda (not realizing until too late the bottles were $3.75), we headed over to the tent to get the bears. Lauren got to pick the bears for both herself and Eric. They look almost the same, but there are some minute differences. If you want to know what they are, you'll have to come visit us and see :)
Even with spending 5-6 hours at the zoo, Lauren was incredibly well behaved. And, by "well-behaved", I mean she only had about 3 or 4 tantrums. We also signed up as members there, mainly because it was an obvious cheaper way to go. With Eric and Lauren, we knew seeing all of the zoo was just not going to happen. So, why not pay just a little extra and come back for free. As it was, we almost spent what the cost of the membership was, so I think we made a good choice.
On this particular trip, we got to see the bears, some big cats, the dolphins, pinnipeds, pachyderms, and camels. Ok ... now you can go and google pinnipeds. I'll wait.

You back? Good. I know what you're thinking. How could you not see the monkeys?!?!?! I wish I could say. That's just one of the drawbacks of having a 2 month old who insists on eating every few hours. On the way to the zoo, we had a talk and I tried to tell him he needed to go 6 hours without eating. I guess my lecture just fell on deaf ears. Cute, little, deaf ears, but deaf ears none-the-less. Lauren loved the dolphin show, but I think she really enjoyed them before the show started. That's when the dolphins are just roaming the pool and would occasionally do a jump or two. The squeals of delight were a treasure. She didn't squeal much when the show started, but it did captivate her. My favorite part of the trip was when we heard the lion roar. This was just as we were about to leave. Eric was getting his last feeding before heading home. There was this great area where Debbie could sit on a bench, shaded by trees, about 20 feet from the main walk. While not private, it did feel secluded enough to be comfortable. So, we're sitting there and Lauren is spinning this "Wheel of Survival" thing the zoo has, when we hear this enormous barking like sound. Lauren and I rush over to see the lion giving the ole vocal chords a workout. It was quite a sight, and Lauren squealed each time he let loose with a roar.
Overall, it was a great day (though my knees and back might beg to differ) The weather was really great with a light breeze making for a very comfortable time. Now, we just have to figure out when to go back so we can get our money's worth. Oh, and maybe we'll get Lauren to stop by the Sting Ray Bay and get her to put a sting ray. Wouldn't that be neat!

More useless information crammed in my noggin

Ooooooooooooooooooooh, let's name the zones, the zones, the zones. Let's name the zones of the open sea. Theeeeeeeeere's epipelagic, mesopolagic, bathyal, abyssalpelagic. All the rest are too deep for you and me to see.

This has been my weekend. For those of you unfamiliar with the quote, it's the song Mr. Ray first sings in Finding Nemo (one of Lauren's favorite movies). Now, I don't mean we watched FN (Our subtle way of mentioning the movie title without Lauren going into full pleading mode). As I am wont to do around the house, I will occasionally distract the kids with singing. One day, I tried out this little gem because I thought Lauren would enjoy the long monosyllabic intro. Much to my chagrin, she loved it soooo much, she demanded and encore ... and an encore ... and an encore ... and an encore. I will state that the second sentence of this song required some googling to figure out, but my first pass was surprisingly close with a simple phonetic recall of what was sung. Anyway, I now know the 5 zones of the open sea. Jepoardy!, here I come!.

Who gets burned in March?

What a day!!!!! First, we introduced Lauren to her brand new big girl room. Her reaction was priceless:

Oh ... it's beautiful

I never expected that great a reaction. Of course, the big test is how she handles sleeping in the new room over the next few days. I don't really consider tonight a valid test because of what else we did.
How could we not take advantage of the weather today? It was sunny and 78 with a nice breeze. The neighborhood was filled with kids running around and adults chatting it up, so we had to join in. Lauren had an absolute blast. We played with basketballs and baseballs, rode her new bike, and had fun playing with the other kids. She also drove one of those electric jeeps around. She had seen them before, but was never brave enough to try it out. Today, she got brave enough to sit in one. From there, it didn't take her long to slide into the driver's seat and go for a spin. Her smiles could not have been bigger. She just loved every minute of it. Guess I need to go find one of these bad boys for her this year.
There is just one problem. Living in Chicago, my skin has not seen hide nor hair of the sun for about 5 months. Immediately subjecting my skin to several hours of baking sun has produced this nice glow ... a nice red glow but a glow nonetheless. I never thought I would get a sun burn in March. My only hope is, when I go to work tomorrow, I am just one of many to have spent a little too much time enjoying the new found sun.

Big Day Planned

With Debbie abondoning Lauren and I tomorrow for work, I am trying to figure out what to do. By our lonesome, we are going to go shoe shopping. Lauren's shoes are getting smaller by the minute and it's time we get her a new pair. Not really wanting to just sit around the house, I figured I am up to the challenge of finding a good pair of shoes for a 2 year old. Hopefully, my sanity will remain intact for that portion because I also thought tomorrow would be a good day to redeem a Build-A-Bear gift certificate Lauren got for her birthday. So, it should be a fun day, if a little exhausting. I can't imagine how this would work with 2 in tow!

My Shiny New Friend

Where does the time go. I can't believe how busy I've been lately. The only minor caveat to that is the thing taking up most of my time is a new little toy I like to call my Xbox 360. Yes folks, I was able to convince Debbie that the one item our humble abode was in most need of was a brand new shiny gaming console.
One thing Debbie understands is how hard I look around for deals. Well, this one was too good to pass up. Microcenter has a deal til the end of the month whereby you too can pick up and Xbox 360 Premium Bundle (Retail $499) for $299. Of course, to get this deal you have to walk into the store hopping on 1 foot while patting your head and rubbing your belly, but it is a great deal nonetheless. So, for the past 2 nights, I have stayed up to ungodly hours to revel in my new shiny friend.
Since we are cost-conscious, I only have 2 games. I've borrowed Burnout Revenge from a friend and then, with a 15% off deal, I bought Gears of War. There are several accessories I still want to pick up, but the deals aren't hot right now, so I'm holding off.
So, if you try to contact me and Debbie says I'm unavailable, I am either on the toilet, or playing my Xbox. Just an FYI.

Party like its 2006!

What a weekend! On Saturday, we had Lauren's birthday party. Let's start with party preparation.
Unlike last year, Debbie and I were not nearly as prepared. I don't know what it was, but this birthday seemed to sneak up on us a bit more than usual. As late was Wednesday, we had yet to order the food or the cake. Can you imagine? Three days before the party and Mrs. Planner had yet to order these things!! (What ... you expect ME to do the planning? pbbt!) Fortunately, we knew what we wanted to by Thursday, 10 am, everything was ordered ... or so we thought.
Come Saturday morning, it was time to go pick up everything. Balloon and cake pickup went without a hitch (except I forgot to pick up the ice, but I blame Debbie for that ... I have yet to create a reason why, but I'm pretty certain she is at fault). Picking up the sandwiches provided some pre-party excitement. After announcing you are there to pick up a catering order, the last thing you want to see is a blank stare and a horrified look, followed by the question "When did you place the order?". As it turns out, they did not have the order and there were no platters waiting for me. This is why we schedule a pick up for 2 hours before the party. It allows enough time to correct a mistake like this one. In fact, they were able to produce 2 complete sandwich platters per my request in 15 minutes. Crisis averted.
Despite a little pre-party meltdown over balloons, Lauren was a gem the whole day. She took a little bit warming up to her cousins again, but once the play time began, she had a ball. For those who have not been to a child's birthday party, there is one important fact to know. There will be one present that brings the present opening to a screeching halt. It is the one toy that captures the attention of every child there and makes them want to have it opened immediately. That present this year was a tumbling Tigger. One squeeze of this orange ball of energy's nose would send it somersaulting down the rug all to a MC Hammer like tune. The best part was when the kids had moved on to other things, the adults all stood around this contraption marvelling at his mechanized acrobatic feats.
Everything else went pretty smoothly. Lauren was pleasant and cooperative opening the presents (except when she couldn't find her cookie). Everyone seemed to enjoy the food and there seemed to be enough for everyone without too much to create leftovers for a week.
That was a lot of writing just for Saturday so I'm going to end this post here. I'll talk about Sunday in the near future (hopefully tomorrow, but I'm not promising anything).